There is a beautiful cathedral church in Granada, Spain, where the front worship area soars two stories high and is all gold. We visited on a cloudy day and it was dark inside, hard to see the art work. Then someone put a coin in a box I hadn’t noticed and suddenly spotlights came on and the church was brightly lit, the gold sparkled and it was as if life had been breathed into the whole space. Of course, I had to try; the coins were a few dollars each and we spent several “lighting” the space.
This is how church life works. No matter how beautiful, no matter how historic a church, it’s the action of some particular person, some particular people, who light it up. It’s the shared gifts of people that make it shine.
Everything we do is the flowering of a group. Think of worship. There’s a preacher, an organist, two or three greeters. There’s the choir—another half a dozen folks. There’s a reader, there’s Mike lighting candles and making sure the right decorations are out. Just that group is about as many as Jesus’ group of disciples. There’s all of us together, a congregation: your voice in song, your spirit in prayer. Church is something we do together.
This month is full of special times. We are in the season of Easter—that’s right, Easter is a whole season, not just a day! Mothers’ Day is May 12, Memorial Day Sunday is May 26.
But in between is the most special day of all for members and friends of a Congregational church: our Annual Meeting (May 19). The Annual Meeting is a sacred moment because in a Congregational Church, we believe God speaks through the expressed, shared opinions of all.
So, if you want to help your church, if you want to move us forward, if you want to do your part, make sure you come to the Annual Meeting. There will be reports about the past to remind us where we’ve been—more importantly, a chance to say where you believe God is leading us.
Lighting up the church isn’t something done just with coins. Come to the meeting! Share your prayer for the future. Light up the church!